The Osprey will help you optimize the performance of your site’s LTE network.
Connectivity to production equipment in mining presents unique challenges. 3D-P’s Intelligent Endpoint product line is all about solving those challenges. The Osprey is an open platform that excels at solving problems with unique models designed to solve specific challenges in different mining environments around the world.
And, while Intelligent Endpoints are known as rugged, purpose-built devices that can handle the rigors of installation on mining equipment, the Osprey tackles a whole host of new challenges presented by LTE technologies for mining.
Solving the LTE uplink problem
LTE is designed for data consumption at the endpoint. But in mining, it’s at the endpoints (the mining fleet) that the data is created and needs to be uploaded to the network. LTE has physical challenges that limit this capability. One of these limitations is in the number of transmit antennas available to the LTE client.
While multiple antennas are available for receiving data from the network, only a single transmit antenna is available. On a haul truck, where the best balance of visibility and reliability is achieved when antennas are placed on either side of the truck, a single transmit antenna leads to a significant problem with antenna blockage, at least half the time.
The Osprey is designed with an integrated RF switch that allows the Intelligent Endpoint (IEP) to transmit on whichever antenna has the greatest signal quality. The transmit antenna is selected in real-time, ensuring the IEP is always using the best antenna. This unique solution allows the Osprey to ensure the device is not only receiving communication from the network, but the critical data created by the onboard applications is received at the server.
An LTE Mesh Network?
The LTE/InstaMesh version of the Osprey includes both the powerful LTE modem and RF switch as described above, as well as a Rajant InstaMesh® dual radio modem. The Osprey is able to tie those two solutions together, allowing the Osprey to send traffic over either LTE or InstaMesh, on a packet by packet basis. Instantly, with no delay and no complicated configuration change.
The resulting LTE/Client Mesh solution solves many potential LTE challenges in mining, particularly when the LTE spectrum utilized provides limited bandwidth, power, or utilizes higher frequencies that challenge connections around a mine:
- – If the LTE signal is lost, the device can send its traffic through a mesh neighbor who still has LTE connectivity;
- – Where additional bandwidth is required, InstaMesh infrastructure devices can be deployed, providing hotspots with high bandwidth capabilities, even while 0 time roaming is available, assuring no outage while traffic switches from network to network.
L2 connectivity over LTE’s L3 technology solved.
For the Hybrid LTE/InstaMesh Osprey, the RPT protocol is used for traffic over the LTE links, providing a L2 tunnel. Even better, should the tunnel need time during creation/re-creation, L2 traffic will hop to a nearby neighbor before being sent either through local Rajant infrastructure, or over the second devices RPT tunnel and LTE connection. When the original devices RPT tunnel is up, the next packet utilizes that link (assuming it is still the best link for that traffic).
For the LTE/WiFi version of the Osprey, other tunneling protocols, such as VxLAN can be utilized.